Review - Potomac Drinking Chocolate

Finally I get to talk about my favorite chocolate maker! Potomac Chocolate has been my favorite since I first tried a bar around 2011, and it's basically just one man, Ben Rasmussen. Originally working out of his basement, he now has a retail shop in Occoquan, VA. He's got single origin bars, milk chocolate bars, flavored bars, cocoa spreads, and even bonbons! It's been a fun adventure watching his small operation grow over the past few years, and his chocolate has remained consistent and absolutely amazing.

You already know I'm a fan of chopping up your favorite chocolate bar and making a drink out of it, but it sure is nice when the chocolate maker does the work for you and offers packets of drink mix. I ordered both the Duarte (Dominican Republic) single origin and the Spiced drinking chocolate.

Also, as I was only enjoying a cup for myself, I cut the directions in half.

First up is the Duarte. You can see what it looks like out of the package. This is real drinking chocolate! I made it with 2% milk. It is, literally, just a cup of bean-to-bar ganache. Very thick, rich, and perfect. The flavors Ben is creating over there in Woodbridge come right through, and are not overpowering or too strong. This is my favorite kind of drinking chocolate, where you can truly taste the artisanal quality.

Sometimes with strong, thick drinking chocolates, when I've finished, I find myself kind of exhausted on sweets for a bit. That's not the case with Potomac. I finished the cup and it was just right.

The ingredients are as pure as the bars - two simple things.

The Duarte has a prominent chocolate fudge flavor, I thought. The tasting notes say "cocoa and red fruit", and I think with the milk preparation, the cocoa really comes through the most. Sometimes when I make a cold chocolate milk, I'll simply use cocoa powder and honey, which really lets the cocoa flavor shine through, unlike the overly sweet, processed flavor of making chocolate milk with store bought syrup. This cup of Duarte reminded me of that, but amplified with the amazing flavor subtleties Potomac is known for. It's definitely got the complexity of a bean-to-bar chocolate, but it's not hitting you over the head with tangy notes or astringent bitterness. This is, of course, why I think Potomac is my favorite maker to begin with. Ben really captures the perfect balance of the specific flavors of the cacao bean while retaining a classic note of dark chocolate.

I wonder if the red fruit will come through more with the water preparation? We'll get to that in a bit.

A couple of years ago I picked up the green mug I'm using here, back before Ben was even making drinking chocolates. The original packaging was a pleasant green wrapper with the now-iconic fish, each bar having a slightly different shade, and this mug matched perfectly. It felt right to still use it, even though the packaging has changed a few times since then. In fact, the packaging has changed yet again since I took these photos! In my memory, I still see Potomac Chocolate as that light shade of green.

Here you can see a variety of Ben's bars: his production line from a few years ago, a few bars of his then-brand-new Cuyagua, Venezuela bar, and a few test bars while he was working out the Cuyagua production. These were a Kickstarter reward!

Now on to the Spiced drinking chocolate!

Again I cut the directions in half, using a digital kitchen scale to measure out half of the 85 grams in the package (well, roughly half). Checking the ingredient list shows you exactly the spices added to the chocolate.

   

It also came out thick like a European drinking chocolate. In my opinion, this means it's a chocolate you should slow down and enjoy, to sip like a dessert. This isn't something you'd grab with a donut, or in a to-go cup as you run out the door. This is an event. This is like opening an expensive bottle of wine (if you're into wine).

I served mine with some rolled wafer cookies and a small variety of Plush Puffs marshmallows, but once I began enjoying it, I savored it by itself. The chocolate needed nothing else.

The Spiced absolutely lived up to expectations. It's wonderful. The package doesn't list the origin of the bean, but I suspect it is the same Duarte bean as the other drinking chocolate. It's fudgey and rich, barely sweetened, and the spice is perfect!


The sea salt, cinnamon, and Aleppo chili pepper, while simple ingredients, add such complexity to this drink. It's got some heat for sure, but it's not the kind of heat that leaves you gasping for cool air afterwards. It's measured and careful, really something different.

So now to try these out with other styles of preparation, the first being my favorite way for most drinking chocolates. I used a full mug of 2% milk and the remaining 41 grams of the Spiced chocolate, which is a very different ratio of liquid to chocolate from what is advised in the instructions. It made a more traditional American style serving of hot chocolate.

And naturally, it's delightful this way. Not strong and powerful, not a concentrated, thick drinking chocolate. Also not very sweet, and the chocolate flavor is still comes through perfectly, along with all the nuances in flavor from the bean-to-bar process. The spice still hits pretty hard, too, giving it a finish to remember.

If I could change anything about it, I'd actually love for the chocolate to be the more prominent flavor rather than the spices. I just love what Ben does with chocolate so much, I want it to be the star. I could probably create that myself by simply making a mixture of the Duarte and the Spiced, or by chopping up a solid bar and adding some of that in.

 I made my last portion of the Duarte with water as instructed on the package. Wow, it's intense and chocolatey, and there's that sharp red fruit tang I was expecting in the earlier preparations! Not overpowering, though, which is very pleasant. Many water based drinking chocolates are strong and sweet and like a punch of concentrated flavor. This one, while more intense than the milk varieties, is not overly strong or sweet. And the portion size recommended on the instructions is just right.

Also part of Kickstarter rewards from years past were t-shirts emblazoned with the current logos and a little crocheted fish! Ben's wife Cyndi made these as an extra bonus during one of the Kickstarter campaigns, and I had to get the green one! I've also been taking the used wrappers and creating laminated bookmarks from them. I've even made some from the older original green packaging. As an avid reader, I can think of no better way to show off wrappers and share my love of craft chocolate!

      

Overall, Potomac Drinking chocolates are a delight, and in my opinion, one of the best in the world. If you love (or are interested in trying) bean-to-bar hot chocolates, you will love this drink. Go get some at the website, and follow them on Instagram. Send a message to Ben, and tell him Melting Mug sent you!